Editing French and Indian War (section)

==Course of war==
Even before Washington returned, Dinwiddie had sent a company of 40 men under [[William Trent]] to that point where they began construction of a small [[stockade]]d fort in the early months of 1754.<ref>O'Meara, p. 41</ref> Governor Duquesne sent additional French forces under [[Claude-Pierre Pécaudy de Contrecœur]] to relieve Saint-Pierre during the same period, and Contrecœur led 500 men south from Fort Venango on April 5, 1754.<ref>O'Meara, pp. 43–45</ref> These forces arrived at the fort on April 16, but Contrecœur generously allowed Trent's small company to withdraw. He purchased their construction tools to continue building what became [[Fort Duquesne]].<ref>Jennings, p. 65</ref>

===Early engagements===
Dinwiddie had ordered Washington to lead a larger force to assist Trent in his work, and Washington learned of Trent's retreat while he was en route.<ref>Anderson (2000), p. 50</ref> Mingo sachem Tanaghrisson had promised support to the British, so Washington continued toward Fort Duquesne and met with him. He then learned of a French scouting party in the area from a warrior sent by Tanaghrisson, so he added Tanaghrisson's dozen Mingo warriors to his own party. Washington's combined force of 52 ambushed 40 ''[[Canadiens]]'' (French colonists of [[New France]]) on the morning of May 28 in what became known as the [[Battle of Jumonville Glen]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Anderson |first1=Fred |title=Crucible of War |date=200 |publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group |isbn=9780307425393 |pages=52–53}}</ref> They killed many of the Canadiens, including their commanding officer [[Joseph Coulon de Jumonville]], whose head was reportedly split open by Tanaghrisson with a tomahawk. Historian [[Fred Anderson (historian)|Fred Anderson]] suggests that Tanaghrisson was acting to gain the support of the British and to regain authority over his own people. They had been inclined to support the French, with whom they had long trading relationships. One of Tanaghrisson's men told Contrecoeur that Jumonville had been killed by British musket fire.<ref name="AndersonCrucible51_9">Anderson (2000), pp. 51–59.</ref> Historians generally consider the Battle of Jumonville Glen as the opening battle of the French and Indian War in North America, and the start of hostilities in the Ohio valley.
[[File:The Night Council At Fort Necessity from the Darlington Collection of Engravings.PNG|thumb|Washington with his war council during the [[Battle of Fort Necessity]]. After deliberations, it was decided to withdraw, and surrender the [[Fort Necessity National Battlefield|fort]].]]
Following the battle, Washington pulled back several miles and established [[Fort Necessity National Battlefield|Fort Necessity]], which the Canadians attacked under the command of Jumonville's brother at the [[Battle of Fort Necessity]] on July 3. Washington surrendered and negotiated a withdrawal under arms. One of his men reported that the Canadian force was accompanied by [[Shawnee]], [[Delaware]], and Mingo warriors—just those whom Tanaghrisson was seeking to influence.<ref name="AndersonCrucible59_65">Anderson (2000), pp. 59–65.</ref>

News of the two battles reached England in August. After several months of negotiations, the government of [[Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne|the Duke of Newcastle]] decided to send an army expedition the following year to dislodge the French.<ref name="Fowler52">Fowler, p. 52.</ref> They chose Major General [[Edward Braddock]] to lead the expedition.<ref>Lengel p. 52.</ref> Word of the British military plans leaked to France well before Braddock's departure for North America. In response, [[Louis XV of France|King Louis XV]] dispatched six regiments to New France under the command of [[Jean Erdman, Baron Dieskau|Baron Dieskau]] in 1755.<ref>O'Meara, p. 113.</ref> The British sent out their fleet in February 1755, intending to blockade French ports, but the French fleet had already sailed. Admiral [[Edward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke|Edward Hawke]] detached a fast squadron to North America in an attempt to intercept them.
[[File:Capture des flutes Alcide et Lys en 1755 pres de Louisbourg.jpg|thumb|In June 1755, the British [[Action of 8 June 1755|captured]] French naval ships sent to provide war [[matériel]] to the [[Acadian]] and Mi'kmaw militias in Nova Scotia.]]
In a second British action, Admiral [[Edward Boscawen]] fired on the [[French ship Alcide (1743)|French ship ''Alcide'']] on June 8, 1755, [[Action of 8 June 1755|capturing her]] and two troop ships.<ref name="Fowler74_5">Fowler, pp. 74–75.</ref> The British harassed French shipping throughout 1755, seizing ships and capturing seamen. These actions contributed to the eventual formal declarations of war in spring 1756.<ref name="Fowler98">Fowler, p. 98.</ref>

An early important political response to the opening of hostilities was the convening of the [[Albany Congress]] in June and July, 1754.  The goal of the congress was to formalize a unified front in trade and negotiations with the Indians, since the allegiance of the various tribes and nations was seen to be pivotal in the war that was unfolding.  The plan that the delegates agreed to was neither ratified by the colonial legislatures nor approved by the Crown.  Nevertheless, the format of the congress and many specifics of the plan became the prototype for confederation during the [[American Revolutionary War|War of Independence]].

===British campaigns, 1755===
The British formed an aggressive plan of operations for 1755. General Braddock was to lead the expedition to Fort Duquesne,<ref name="WDL">{{cite web |url=http://www.wdl.org/en/item/9580/ |title = The Battle of the Monongahela |website = [[World Digital Library]] |year = 1755 |access-date = 2013-08-03 }}</ref> while Massachusetts governor [[William Shirley]] was given the task of fortifying [[Fort Oswego]] and attacking [[Fort Niagara]]. [[Sir William Johnson]] was to capture [[Fort St. Frédéric]] at [[Crown Point, New York]],<ref>O'Meara, pp. 110–111.</ref> and Lieutenant Colonel [[Robert Monckton]] was to capture [[Fort Beauséjour]] to the east on the frontier between Nova Scotia and Acadia.<ref>O'Meara, p. 163.</ref>
[[File:Indians ambush British at Battle of the Monongahela.jpg|thumb|British forces under fire from the French and Indian forces at [[Battle of the Monongahela|Monongahela]], when the [[Braddock expedition]] failed to take [[Fort Duquesne]].]]
Braddock led about 1,500 army troops and provincial militia on the [[Braddock expedition]] in June 1755 to take Fort Duquesne, with George Washington as one of his aides. The expedition was a disaster. It was [[Battle of the Monongahela|attacked]] by French regulars, [[Canadian Militia]]men, and Indian warriors ambushing them from hiding places up in trees and behind logs, and Braddock called for a retreat. He was killed and approximately 1,000 British soldiers were killed or injured.<ref name="WDL"/> The remaining 500 British troops retreated to Virginia, led by Washington. Washington and [[Thomas Gage]] played key roles in organizing the retreat—two future opponents in the [[American Revolutionary War]].

The British government initiated a plan to increase their military capability in preparation for war following news of Braddock's defeat and the start of parliament's session in November 1755. Among the early legislative measures were the [[Recruiting Act 1756]],<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/statutesatlarge57britgoog#page/n364 ''An act for the speedy and effectual recruiting of his Majesty's land forces and marines.''], p. 318</ref> the [[Commissions to Foreign Protestants Act 1756]]<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/statutesatlarge57britgoog#page/n376 ''An act to enable his Majesty to grant commissions to a certain number of foreign Protestants who have served abroad as officers, or engineers, to act and rank as officers, or engineers, in America only, under certain restrictions and qualifications.''], p.331</ref> for the [[King's Royal Rifle Corps|Royal American Regiment]], the [[Navigation Act 1756]],<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/statutesatlarge57britgoog#page/n416/search/America ''An act for the better supply of mariners and seamen to serve in his Majesty's ships of war, and on board merchant ships, and other trading ships and vessels.''], p. 370</ref> and the [[Continuance of Laws Act 1756]].<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/statutesatlarge57britgoog#page/n500 ''An act for extending (the Navy Act 1748, 22 Geo. 2 c. 33) (for amending, explaining, and reducing into one act of parliament the laws relating to the government of his Majesty's ships, vessels and forces by sea) to such officers,  seamen, and others, as shall serve on board his Majesty's ships or vessels employed upon the lakes, great waters, or rivers, in North America.''], p. 457</ref> England passed the Naval Prize Act 1756 following the proclamation of war on May 17 to allow the capture of ships and establish privateering.<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/statutesatlarge57britgoog#page/n524/search/America ''An act for the encouragement of seamen, and the more effectual manning of his Majesty's navy.''] p. 481</ref>

The French acquired a copy of the British war plans, including the activities of Shirley and Johnson. Shirley's efforts to fortify Oswego were bogged down in logistical difficulties, exacerbated by his inexperience in managing large expeditions. In conjunction, he was made aware that the French were massing for an attack on Fort Oswego in his absence when he planned to attack Fort Niagara. As a response, he left garrisons at Oswego, [[Fort Bull]], and Fort Williams, the last two located on the [[Oneida Carry]] between the [[Mohawk River]] and [[Wood Creek]] at [[Rome, New York]]. Supplies were cached at Fort Bull for use in the projected attack on Niagara.

Johnson's expedition was better organized than Shirley's, which was noticed by New France's governor the [[Pierre François de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnal|Marquis de Vaudreuil]]. Vaudreuil had been concerned about the extended supply line to the forts on the Ohio, and he had sent Baron Dieskau to lead the defenses at Frontenac against Shirley's expected attack. Vaudreuil saw Johnson as the larger threat and sent Dieskau to Fort St. Frédéric to meet that threat. Dieskau planned to attack the British encampment at [[Fort Edward (village), New York|Fort Edward]] at the upper end of navigation on the [[Hudson River]], but Johnson had strongly fortified it, and Dieskau's Indian support was reluctant to attack. The two forces finally met in the bloody [[Battle of Lake George]] between Fort Edward and [[Fort William Henry]]. The battle ended inconclusively, with both sides withdrawing from the field. Johnson's advance stopped at Fort William Henry, and the French withdrew to Ticonderoga Point, where they began the construction of [[Fort Carillon]] (later renamed [[Fort Ticonderoga]] after the British captured it in 1759).
[[File:A View of the Plundering and Burning of the City of Grymross, by Thomas Davies, 1758.JPG|thumb|British raid on the Acadian settlement of Grimross. Efforts to undermine the French [[Fortress of Louisbourg]] resulted in the [[Expulsion of the Acadians|forcible removal of the Acadians]].]]
Colonel Monckton [[Battle of Fort Beausejour|captured Fort Beauséjour]] in June 1755 in the sole British success that year, cutting off the French [[Fortress Louisbourg]] from land-based reinforcements. To cut vital supplies to Louisbourg, Nova Scotia's Governor [[Charles Lawrence (British Army officer)|Charles Lawrence]] ordered the deportation of the French-speaking [[Acadian]] population from the area. Monckton's forces, including companies of [[Rogers' Rangers]], [[Great Upheaval|forcibly removed]] thousands of Acadians, chasing down many who resisted and sometimes committing atrocities. Cutting off supplies to Louisbourg led to its demise.<ref>{{cite book |last=Patterson |first=Stephen E. |chapter=1744–1763: Colonial Wars and Aboriginal Peoples |editor1-first=Phillip |editor1-last=Buckner |editor2-first=John |editor2-last=Reid |title=The Atlantic Region to Confederation: A History |location=Toronto |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1994 |page=152 |isbn=0802005535 }}</ref> The Acadian resistance was sometimes quite stiff, in concert with Indian allies including the Mi'kmaq, with ongoing frontier raids against [[Raid on Dartmouth (1751)|Dartmouth]] and [[Raid on Lunenburg (1756)|Lunenburg]], among others. The only clashes of any size were at [[Battle of Petitcodiac|Petitcodiac]] in 1755 and at [[Battle of Bloody Creek (1757)|Bloody Creek]] near [[Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia|Annapolis Royal]] in 1757, other than the campaigns to expel the Acadians ranging around the [[Bay of Fundy Campaign (1755)|Bay of Fundy]], on the [[Petitcodiac River Campaign|Petitcodiac]] and [[St. John River Campaign|St. John]] rivers, and [[Île Saint-Jean Campaign|Île Saint-Jean]].

===French victories, 1756–1757===
{{See also|Franco-Indian alliance}}
[[File:NSRW Siege of Quebec.png|thumb|Map of Quebec with the distribution of French and British]]
Following the death of Braddock, William Shirley assumed command of British forces in North America, and he laid out his plans for 1756 at a meeting in Albany in December 1755. He proposed renewing the efforts to capture Niagara, Crown Point, and Duquesne, with attacks on [[Fort Frontenac]] on the north shore of Lake Ontario and an expedition through the wilderness of the [[District of Maine|Maine district]] and down the [[Chaudière River]] to attack the [[Quebec City|city of Quebec]]. His plan, however, got bogged down by disagreements and disputes with others, including William Johnson and New York's Governor [[Charles Hardy|Sir Charles Hardy]], and consequently gained little support.
[[File:4thEarlOfLoudoun.jpg|thumb|upright|In January 1756, [[John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun|John Campbell]] was named as the new British [[Commander-in-Chief, North America]].]]
Newcastle replaced him in January 1756 with [[John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun|Lord Loudoun]], with Major General [[James Abercrombie (general)|James Abercrombie]] as his second in command. Neither of these men had as much campaign experience as the trio of officers whom France sent to North America.<ref name="Fowler98" /> French regular army reinforcements arrived in New France in May 1756, led by Major General [[Louis-Joseph de Montcalm]] and seconded by the [[Chevalier de Lévis]] and Colonel François-Charles de Bourlamaque, all experienced veterans from the [[War of the Austrian Succession]]. On May 17, 1756, Britain formally declared war on France, which expanded the war into Europe and came to be known as the [[Seven Years' War]].

Governor Vaudreuil had ambitions to become the French commander in chief, in addition to his role as governor, and he acted during the winter of 1756 before those reinforcements arrived. Scouts had reported the weakness of the British supply chain, so he ordered an attack against the forts which Shirley had erected at the Oneida Carry. In the [[Battle of Fort Bull]], French forces destroyed the fort and large quantities of supplies, including 45,000 pounds of gunpowder. They set back any British hopes for campaigns on Lake Ontario and endangered the Oswego garrison, already short on supplies. French forces in the Ohio valley also continued to intrigue with Indians throughout the area, encouraging them to raid frontier settlements. This led to ongoing alarms along the western frontiers, with streams of refugees returning east to get away from the action.
[[File:Fort Oswego.jpg|thumb|In August 1756, French soldiers and native warriors led by [[Louis-Joseph de Montcalm]] successfully [[Battle of Fort Oswego|attacked Fort Oswego]].]]
[[File:Montcalm on the Plains of Abraham.jpg|thumb|General [[Louis-Joseph de Montcalm]]]]
The new British command was not in place until July. Abercrombie arrived in Albany but refused to take any significant actions until Loudoun approved them, and Montcalm took bold action against his inertia. He built on Vaudreuil's work harassing the Oswego garrison and executed a strategic [[feint]] by moving his headquarters to Ticonderoga, as if to presage another attack along Lake George. With Abercrombie pinned down at Albany, Montcalm slipped away and led the [[Battle of Fort Oswego|successful attack on Oswego]] in August. In the aftermath, Montcalm and the Indians under his command disagreed about the disposition of prisoners' personal effects. The Europeans did not consider them prizes and prevented the Indians from stripping the prisoners of their valuables, which angered the Indians.

Loudoun was a capable administrator but a cautious field commander, and he planned one major operation for 1757: an attack on New France's capital of [[Quebec]]. He left a sizable force at Fort William Henry to distract Montcalm and began organizing for the expedition to Quebec. He was then ordered to attack Louisbourg first by William Pitt, the [[Secretary of State for the Southern Department|Secretary of State]] responsible for the colonies. The expedition was beset by delays of all kinds but was finally ready to sail from [[City of Halifax|Halifax, Nova Scotia]], in early August. In the meantime, French ships had escaped the British blockade of the French coast, and a fleet awaited Loudoun at Louisbourg which outnumbered the British fleet. Faced with this strength, Loudoun returned to New York amid news that [[Battle of Fort William Henry|a massacre had occurred at Fort William Henry]].
[[File:Montcalm trying to stop the massacre.jpg|thumb|Montcalm attempts to stop native warriors from attacking the British. A number of British soldiers were killed after the [[Siege of Fort William Henry]].]]
French irregular forces (Canadian scouts and Indians) harassed Fort William Henry throughout the first half of 1757. In January, they [[Battle on Snowshoes (1757)|ambushed British rangers]] near Ticonderoga. In February, they launched a raid against the position across the frozen Lake George, destroying storehouses and buildings outside the main fortification. In early August, Montcalm and 7,000 troops besieged the fort, which capitulated with an agreement to withdraw under parole. When the withdrawal began, some of Montcalm's Indian allies attacked the British column because they were angry about the lost opportunity for loot, killing and capturing several hundred men, women, children, and slaves. The aftermath of the siege may have contributed to the transmission of [[smallpox]] into remote Indian populations, as some Indians were reported to have traveled from beyond the Mississippi to participate in the campaign and returned afterward. Modern writer William Nester believes that the Indians might have been exposed to European carriers, although no proof exists.<ref>Nester, pp. 53–61</ref>

===British conquest, 1758–1760===
{{see also|Great Britain in the Seven Years' War#Conquest of Canada (1758–60)}}
Vaudreuil and Montcalm were minimally resupplied in 1758, as the British blockade of the French coastline limited French shipping. The situation in New France was further exacerbated by a poor harvest in 1757, a difficult winter, and the allegedly corrupt machinations of [[François Bigot]], the [[Intendant of New France|intendant of the territory]]. His schemes to supply the colony inflated prices and were believed by Montcalm to line his pockets and those of his associates. A massive outbreak of [[smallpox]] among western Indian tribes led many of them to stay away from trading in 1758. The disease probably spread through the crowded conditions at William Henry after the battle;<ref name="Fowler138">Fowler, p. 138.</ref> yet the Indians blamed the French for bringing "bad medicine" as well as denying them prizes at Fort William Henry.

Montcalm focused his meager resources on the defense of the St. Lawrence, with primary defenses at Carillon, Quebec, and Louisbourg, while Vaudreuil argued unsuccessfully for a continuation of the raiding tactics that had worked quite effectively in previous years.<ref name="Fowler139">Fowler, p. 139.</ref> The British failures in North America combined with other failures in the European theater and led to Newcastle's fall from power along with the Duke of Cumberland, his principal military advisor.
[[File:General Wolfe at the siege of Louisbourg, 1758.svg|thumb|British forces [[Siege of Louisbourg (1758)|besieging]] the Fortress of Louisbourg. The French fortress fell in July 1758 after a 48-day siege.]]
Newcastle and Pitt [[Pitt–Newcastle ministry|joined in an uneasy coalition]] in which Pitt dominated the military planning. He embarked on a plan for the 1758 campaign that was largely developed by Loudoun. He had been replaced by Abercrombie as commander in chief after the failures of 1757. Pitt's plan called for three major offensive actions involving large numbers of regular troops supported by the provincial militias, aimed at capturing the heartlands of New France. Two of the expeditions were successful, with [[Battle of Fort Duquesne|Fort Duquesne]] and [[Siege of Louisbourg (1758)|Louisbourg]] falling to sizable British forces.

====1758====
The [[Forbes Expedition]] was a British campaign in September–October 1758, with 6,000 troops led by General [[John Forbes (British Army officer)|John Forbes]] sent to drive out the French from the contested Ohio Country. The French withdrew from Fort Duquesne and left the British in control of the Ohio River Valley.<ref>{{cite book |first=Fred |last=Anderson |title=Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754–1766 |year=2000 |location=New York |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |pages=[https://archive.org/details/crucibleofwarsev00ande_0/page/267 267–285] |isbn=0375406425 |url=https://archive.org/details/crucibleofwarsev00ande_0/page/267 }}</ref> The great French fortress at [[Fortress of Louisbourg|Louisbourg]] in Nova Scotia was captured after a siege.<ref>William, Wood, ''The Great Fortress: A Chronicle of Louisbourg 1720–1760'' ([https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/6026] Online from [[Project Gutenberg]])</ref>
[[File:La victoire des troupes de Montcalm à Carillon.JPG|right|thumb|A British expedition sent to invade [[Canada (New France)|Canada]] was repulsed by the French at the [[Battle of Carillon]] in July 1758.]]
The third invasion was stopped with the improbable French victory in the [[Battle of Carillon]], in which 3,600 Frenchmen defeated Abercrombie's force of 18,000 regulars, militia, and Indian allies outside the fort which the French called Carillon and the British called Ticonderoga. Abercrombie saved something from the disaster when he sent [[John Bradstreet]] on an expedition that successfully [[Battle of Fort Frontenac|destroyed Fort Frontenac]], including caches of supplies destined for New France's western forts and furs destined for Europe. Abercrombie was recalled and replaced by [[Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst|Jeffery Amherst]], victor at Louisbourg.

The French had generally poor results in 1758 in most theaters of the war. The new foreign minister was the [[Étienne François, duc de Choiseul|duc de Choiseul]], and he decided to focus on an [[Planned French Invasion of Britain (1759)|invasion of Britain]] to draw British resources away from North America and the European mainland. The invasion failed both militarily and politically, as Pitt again planned significant campaigns against New France and sent funds to Britain's mainland ally of Prussia, while the French Navy failed in the 1759 naval battles at [[Battle of Lagos|Lagos]] and [[Battle of Quiberon Bay|Quiberon Bay]]. In one piece of good fortune, some French supply ships did manage to depart France and elude the British blockade of the French coast.

====1759–1760====
{{see also|Conquest of 1760}}
[[File:PlainsOfAbraham2007.jpg|thumb|After a three-month siege of Quebec City, British forces captured the city at the [[Battle of the Plains of Abraham|Plains of Abraham]].]]
The British proceeded to wage a campaign in the northwest frontier of Canada in an effort to cut off the French frontier forts to the west and south. They [[Battle of Ticonderoga (1759)|captured Ticonderoga]] and [[Battle of Fort Niagara|Fort Niagara]], and they defeated the French at the [[Battle of the Thousand Islands|Thousand Islands]] in the summer of 1759. In September 1759, [[James Wolfe]] defeated Montcalm in the [[Battle of the Plains of Abraham]] which claimed the lives of both commanders. After the battle, the French [[Articles of Capitulation of Quebec|capitulated the city]] to the British.

In April 1760, [[François Gaston de Lévis]] led French forces to launch an attack to retake Quebec. Although he won the [[Battle of Sainte-Foy]], Lévis' subsequent [[Siege of Quebec (1760)|siege of Quebec]] ended in defeat when British ships arrived to relieve the garrison. After Lévis had retreated he was given another blow when a British [[Battle of the Restigouche|naval victory at Restigouche]] brought the loss of French ships meant to resupply his army. In July [[Jeffrey Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst|Jeffrey Amherst]] then led British forces numbering around 18,000 men in a [[Montreal Campaign|three pronged attack on Montreal]]. After eliminating French positions along the way all three forces met up and surrounded Montreal in September. Many Canadians deserted or surrendered their arms to British forces while the Native allies of the French sought peace and neutrality. De Lévis and the [[Pierre François de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnal|Marquis de Vaudreuil]] reluctantly signed the [[Articles of Capitulation of Montreal]] on September 8 which effectively completed the British conquest of New France.

===Sporadic engagements, 1760–1763===
Most of the fighting ended in America in 1760, although it continued in Europe between France and Britain. The notable exception was the French seizure of [[St. John's, Newfoundland]]. General Amherst heard of this surprise action and immediately dispatched troops under his nephew [[William Amherst (British Army officer)|William Amherst]], who regained control of Newfoundland after the [[Battle of Signal Hill]] in September 1762.<ref>Anderson (2000), p. 498</ref> Many of the British troops who were stationed in America were reassigned to participate in further British actions in the West Indies, including the [[Battle of Havana (1762)|capture of Spanish Havana]] when Spain belatedly entered the conflict on the side of France, and a [[British expedition against Martinique (1762)|British expedition against French Martinique]] in 1762 led by Major General [[Robert Monckton]].<ref name=Cave21>Cave, p. 21</ref>